N AT I ONAL SPACE P O L ICY o f th e

UNIT ED S TATE S O F A ME R ICA

DECEMBER 9, 2020
“We are a nation of pioneers. We are the
people who crossed the ocean, carved out a
foothold on a vast continent, settled a great
wilderness, and then set our eyes upon the
stars. This is our history, and this is our
destiny.”

President Donald J. Trump

Kennedy Space Center
May 30, 2020
Table of Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................................................ 1
Principles ..................................................................................................................................................... 3
Goals ............................................................................................................................................................. 5
Cross Sector Guidelines ............................................................................................................................. 7
Foundational Activities and Capabilities .................................................................................................. 7
International Cooperation ...................................................................................................................... 12
Preserving the Space Environment to Enhance the Long-term Sustainability of Space Activities ......... 14
Effective Export Policies .......................................................................................................................... 15
Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion..................................................................................................... 16
Protection of Electromagnetic Spectrum................................................................................................ 17
Cybersecurity for United States Space Systems...................................................................................... 18
Assurance of National Critical Functions ................................................................................................ 18
Sector Guidelines...................................................................................................................................... 20
Commercial Space Guidelines ................................................................................................................ 20
Civil Space Guidelines ............................................................................................................................. 23
National Security Space Guidelines ........................................................................................................ 27
 NATIONAL SPACE POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Introduction

“Every person has the opportunity to share through understanding in the

adventures which lie ahead. These opportunities reinforce my conviction that
we and other nations have a great responsibility to promote the peaceful use
of space and to utilize the new knowledge obtainable from space science and
technology for the benefit of all mankind.”

- President Dwight D. Eisenhower, March 26, 1958

Fifty-one years ago, the United States focused its will, leadership, and imagination to lead the
greatest expedition in history, the landing of the first humans on another celestial body. The
aspiration to explore space led the United States to generate the new technologies,
capabilities, expertise, and businesses to fulfill this goal.

Since America’s first steps on the Moon, the United States has utilized its space capabilities to
stimulate economic growth, enhance the quality of life for all Americans and people around
the world, and advance the principles of democracy, human rights, and economic freedom.

The United States will create an environment that energizes our industry to create innovative
commercial approaches that will carry and sustain our next generation of explorers and
entrepreneurs on the Moon and then on to Mars and beyond.

Our way of life on Earth is greatly enhanced by space and the United States acknowledges the
importance of space to the advancement of all humanity. The United States will lead and
strengthen enduring international partnerships to preserve and sustain space for future
activity and so that all nations and all people can benefit from space and improve our way of
living on Earth and in space.

As we seek to expand the benefits of space to people on Earth and in space, unfettered access
to, and freedom to operate in, space will remain a vital national interest. Recognizing the right
of nations to explore and use outer space, the United States will continue to use space for the
security of the Nation and our allies. Should any adversary threaten to endanger the benefits
we all derive from space, the United States will employ all elements of national power to deter
and, if necessary, prevail over hostile activities in, from, and through space.

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The United States has been, and will remain, committed to fostering the ingenuity of the
American people and working with likeminded partners around the world to improve our
quality of life, to explore and learn, and to support peace on Earth and in the stars.

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Principles

It is the policy of the United States to ensure that space operations are consistent with the
following principles.

 It is the shared interest of all nations to act responsibly in space to ensure the safety,
stability, security, and long-term sustainability of space activities. Responsible space
actors operate with openness, transparency, and predictability to maintain the benefits
of space for all humanity.

 A robust, innovative, and competitive commercial space sector is the source of

continued progress and sustained United States leadership in space. The United States
remains committed to encouraging and facilitating the continued growth of a domestic
commercial space sector that is globally competitive, supports national interests, and
advances United States leadership in the generation of new markets and innovation-
driven entrepreneurship.

 In this resurgent era of space exploration, the United States will expand its leadership
alongside nations that share its democratic values, respect for human rights, and
economic freedom. Those values will extend with us to all space destinations as the
United States once again steps beyond Earth, starting with the Moon and continuing to
Mars.

 As established in international law, outer space, including the Moon and other celestial
bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use
or occupation, or by any other means. The United States will pursue the extraction and
utilization of space resources in compliance with applicable law, recognizing those
resources as critical for sustainable exploration, scientific discovery, and commercial
operations.

 All nations have the right to explore and to use space for peaceful purposes and for the
benefit of all humanity, in accordance with applicable law. Consistent with that
principle, the United States will continue to use space for national security activities,
including for the exercise of the inherent right of self-defense. Unfettered access and
freedom to operate in space is a vital national interest.

 The United States considers the space systems of all nations to have the right to pass
through and conduct operations in space without interference. Purposeful interference
with space systems, including supporting infrastructure, will be considered an

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infringement of a nation's rights. Consistent with the defense of those rights, the United
States will seek to deter, counter, and defeat threats in the space domain that are
hostile to the national interests of the United States and its allies. Any purposeful
interference with or an attack upon the space systems of the United States or its allies
that directly affects national rights will be met with a deliberate response at a time,
place, manner, and domain of our choosing.

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Goals

The United States shall:

 Promote and incentivize private industry to facilitate the creation of new global and
domestic markets for United States space goods and services, and strengthen and
preserve the position of the United States as the global partner of choice for
international space commerce.

 Encourage and uphold the rights of nations to use space responsibly and
peacefully by developing and implementing diplomatic, economic, and security
capabilities and strategies to identify and respond to behaviors that threaten those
rights.

 Lead, encourage, and expand international cooperation on mutually beneficial

space activities that broaden and extend the benefits of space for all humanity; further
the exploration and use of space for peaceful purposes; protect the interests of the
United States, its allies, and partners; advance United States interests and values; and
enhance access to space-derived information and services.

 Create a safe, stable, secure, and sustainable environment for space activities, in
collaboration with industry and international partners, through the development and
promotion of responsible behaviors; improved practices for the collection and sharing
of information on space objects; protection of critical space systems and supporting
infrastructures, with special attention to cybersecurity and supply chains; and
measures to mitigate orbital debris.

 Increase the assurance of national critical functions enabled by commercial, civil,

scientific, and national security spacecraft and supporting infrastructure against
disruption, degradation, and destruction through the development and fielding of
materiel and non-materiel capabilities and rehearsal of continuity of operations
practices.

 Extend human economic activity into deep space by establishing a permanent

human presence on the Moon, and, in cooperation with private industry and
international partners, develop infrastructure and services that will enable science-
driven exploration, space resource utilization, and human missions to Mars.

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 Increase the quality of life for all humanity through the cultivation, maturation, and
development of space-enabled scientific and economic capabilities, including space
and Earth resource discovery, management, and utilization; space and Earth weather
and environmental monitoring and prediction; disaster monitoring, prediction,
response, and recovery; and planetary defense.

 Preserve and expand United States leadership in the development of innovative

space technologies, services, and operations. Work with likeminded international and
private partners, to prevent the transfer of sensitive space capabilities to those who
threaten the interests of the United States, its allies, and its supporting industrial base.

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Cross Sector Guidelines

The heads of all executive departments and agencies (agencies), consistent with their
respective missions and authorities, shall execute the guidance provided in this section
consistent with applicable law.

Heads of agencies with representation on the National Space Council shall designate a senior
official with responsibility for overseeing their respective agency's implementation of the
National Space Policy. This official shall periodically report to the National Space Council on
the progress of implementation of this policy within respective agencies.

Foundational Activities and Capabilities

Foundational activities and capabilities enable the United States to fulfill the principles and
goals directed in this policy.

 Strengthen United States Leadership in Space-related Science and Technology.

Heads of agencies shall:

- Reinforce United States technological leadership by promoting technology

development; improved industrial capacity; a robust supplier base; and science,
technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education opportunities
necessary to support United States leadership in space innovation;

- Conduct basic and applied research that increases space capabilities and
decreases costs, if such research is best supported by the Government; and

- Encourage commercial space innovation and entrepreneurship through targeted

investment in promising technologies that improve the Nation's leadership in
space operations.

 Strengthen and Secure the United States Space Industrial Base. To further foster
the security and resilience of the domestic space industrial base, heads of agencies, to
the maximum extent practicable and consistent with applicable law, shall:

- Promote the availability of space-related industrial capabilities in support of

national critical functions;

- Identify suppliers and manufacturers key to the United States space-related

science, technology, and industrial bases and incentivizing them to remain in, or
return to, the United States;

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- Support innovative entrepreneurial space companies through appropriate

deregulatory actions;

- Strengthen the security, integrity, and reliability of the supply chains of United
States space-related science, technology, and industrial bases by identifying and
eliminating dependence on suppliers owned by, controlled by, or subject to the
jurisdiction or direction of foreign adversaries, and engaging with United States
and international industrial partners to improve processes and effectively
manage and secure supply chains; and

- Incorporate cybersecurity principles across all phases of space systems design,

development, acquisition, and deployment.

 Enhance Capabilities for Assured Access to Space. United States access to space
depends in the first instance on assured launch capabilities. To the extent consistent
with applicable law, United States Government payloads shall be launched on vehicles
manufactured in the United States, unless approved for foreign launch in support of:

- No-exchange-of-funds agreements involving international scientific programs,

launches of scientific instruments on international spacecraft, or other
cooperative government-to-government agreements;

- Launches of secondary-technology demonstrators or scientific payloads for which

no United States launch service is available;

- Hosted payload arrangements on spacecraft not owned by the United States

Government; or

- Other circumstances on a case-by-case exemption as coordinated by the Assistant

to the President for National Security Affairs and the Director of the Office of
Science and Technology Policy, consistent with established interagency
standards and coordination guidelines.

- To the maximum extent practicable and consistent with their responsibilities and
applicable law, the heads of agencies shall:

o Work collaboratively to acquire space launch services and hosted

Government payload arrangements that are secure, reliable, cost-effective,
and responsive to United States Government needs;

o Enhance operational efficiency, increase capacity, and reduce launch costs

by investing in the modernization of space launch infrastructure;
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o Permit the launch of United States Government spacecraft manufactured in

the United States from territories of allied and likeminded nations when
launched on vehicles manufactured in the United States; and

o When sufficient United States commercial capabilities and services do

not exist, support industry-led efforts to rapidly develop new and
modernized launch systems and technologies necessary to assure and to
sustain future reliable, resilient, and efficient access to space.

 Safeguard Space Components of Critical Infrastructure. The space domain is

important to the function of critical infrastructure vital to the security, economy,
resilience, public health, and safety of the United States. Multiple infrastructure sectors
depend on reliable access to space-based systems to perform their functions.

- The United States will develop strategies, capabilities, and options to respond to
any purposeful interference with or attack on the space systems of the United
States or its allies that directly affects national rights, especially those necessary
for the operation of the Nation's critical infrastructure. Such strategies,
capabilities, and options will allow for a deliberate response at a time, place,
manner, and domain of its choosing.

- The Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Director of
National Intelligence, in consultation with other heads of agencies, as
appropriate, shall develop and maintain focused threat and risk assessments on
the effect of deleterious actions in the space domain to the Nation's critical
infrastructure.

 Maintain and Enhance Space-based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT)

Systems. The United States must maintain its leadership in the service, provision, and
responsible use of global navigation satellite systems (GNSS). To that end, the United
States shall:

- Provide continuous worldwide access, for peaceful civil uses, to the Global
Positioning System (GPS) and its Government-provided augmentations, free of
direct user fees;

- Engage with international GNSS providers to ensure compatibility, encourage

interoperability with likeminded nations, promote transparency in civil service
provision, and enable market access for United States industry;

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- Operate and maintain the GPS constellation to satisfy civil and national security
needs, consistent with published performance standards and interface
specifications;

- Improve the cybersecurity of GPS, its augmentations, and federally owned GPS-
enabled devices, and foster commercial space sector adoption of cyber-secure
GPS enabled systems consistent with cybersecurity principles for space systems;

- Allow for the continued use of allied and other trusted international PNT services
in conjunction with GPS in a manner that ensures the resilience of PNT services
and is consistent with applicable law;

- Invest in domestic capabilities and support international activities to detect,

analyze, mitigate, and increase resilience to harmful interference to GNSS;

- Identify and promote, as appropriate, multiple and diverse complementary PNT

systems or approaches for critical infrastructure and mission-essential functions;
and

- Promote the responsible use of United States space-based PNT services and
capabilities in civil and commercial sectors at the Federal, State, and local levels,
including the utilization of multiple and diverse complementary PNT systems or
approaches for national critical functions.

 Develop and Retain Space Professionals. The primary goals of space professional
development are to achieve mission success in space operations and acquisition;
stimulate innovation to improve commercial, civil, and national security space
capabilities; and advance science, exploration, and discovery. Toward these ends, the
heads of agencies, in cooperation with industry and academia, as appropriate, shall:

- Establish standards for accession and career progression;

- Seek to create educational and professional development opportunities for the

current space workforce, including internships and fellowships, and to implement
measures to recruit, develop, maintain, and retain skilled space professionals,
including engineering and scientific personnel and experienced space system
developers and operators, across Government and commercial sectors;

- Promote and expand public-private partnerships within space and technology

industries to foster transdisciplinary educational achievement in STEM programs,
supported by targeted investments in such initiatives;

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- Promote the exchange of scientists, engineers, and technologists among Federal

laboratories, universities, and the commercial space sector to facilitate the
exchange of diverse ideas and to build capacity in space technical knowledge and
skills;

- Develop the means to recruit and to employ qualified and skilled space
professionals from likeminded nations to increase United States leadership in
space commerce, science, exploration, and security; and

- Support training and education in key enabling scientific and engineering

disciplines, including: artificial intelligence and machine learning, autonomy,
orbital mechanics, collision avoidance methods, robotics, computer science and
engineering, digital design and engineering, electromagnetics, materials science,
hypersonics, geoscience, quantum-related technologies and applications, and
cybersecurity.

 Improve Space System Development and Procurement. The heads of agencies shall:

- Improve timely acquisition and deployment of space systems through

enhancements in estimating costs, assessing technological risk and maturity, and
leveraging and understanding emerging industrial base capabilities and capacity;

- Reduce programmatic risk through improved management of program

requirements, reduce the use of cost-plus contracts, where appropriate, and take
advantage of cost-effective opportunities to test high-risk components, payloads,
and technologies in digital, space, or other relevant environments;

- Create opportunities to strengthen and to develop pertinent expertise in the

Government workforce through internships and fellowships with the commercial
space sector;

- Pursue and endorse cooperative research and development agreements;

- Incorporate rapid prototyping, experimentation, and other efforts to accelerate

development cycles to improve performance and to reduce costs;

- Embrace innovation to cultivate and to sustain an entrepreneurial United States

research and development environment;

- Engage with the industrial base to improve processes and effectively manage and
secure supply chains; and

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- Promote, where consistent with applicable rules and regulations concerning

Government contracting, procurement of critical materials and sub-tier
components, such as solar cells and microelectronics, from domestic and other
trusted sources of supply.

 Strengthen Interagency and Commercial Partnerships. As facilitated by the

Executive Secretary of the National Space Council, the heads of agencies shall,
consistent with applicable law:

- Strengthen existing partnerships and pursue new partnerships among

interagency members, the United States commercial space and related sectors,
and United States academic institutions through cooperation, collaboration,
information sharing, innovative procurements, and alignment of common
pursuits to achieve United States goals;

- Encourage the sharing of capabilities and the exchange of expertise among

agencies and, to the maximum extent practicable, with the United States
commercial sectors to strengthen the Nation's ability to pursue its strategic goals;

- Develop implementation and response strategies and leverage United States

capabilities to increase technology innovation and achieve desired outcomes
involving space operations relating to science, public safety, national security,
and economic growth.

International Cooperation
Strengthen United States Leadership in Space. The heads of agencies, in collaboration with
the Secretary of State, shall:

 Demonstrate United States leadership in space-related fora and activities to strengthen

deterrence and assure allies and partners of its commitment to preserving the safety,
stability, security, and long-term sustainability of space activities;

 Identify areas of mutual interest and benefit, such as collective self-defense and the
promotion of secure and resilient space-related infrastructure;

 Lead the enhancement of safety, stability, security, and long-term sustainability in

space by promoting a framework for responsible behavior in outer space, including the
pursuit and effective implementation of best practices, standards, and norms of
behavior;

- Encourage other nations to adopt United States space regulatory approaches and
commercial space sector practices;

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- Encourage interoperability among United States, allied, and partner space

systems, services, and data;

- Facilitate new market opportunities for United States commercial space

capabilities and services, including commercial applications that rely on United
States Government-provided space systems;

- Promote the adoption of policies and practices internationally that facilitate full,
open, and timely access to Government space-derived environmental data on a
reciprocal basis;

- Promote appropriate burden-, cost-, and risk-sharing among international

partners; and

- Augment United States capabilities by leveraging existing and planned space

capabilities of allies and partners.

Identify and Expand Areas for International Cooperation. The heads of agencies shall
identify potential areas for international cooperation across the spectrum of commercial, civil,
and national security space activities that increase the understanding of Earth and space
sciences, expand the detection of hazardous near-Earth objects, ensure the freedom of
operation in and through space, increase the quality and safety of life on Earth, extend human
presence and economic activity beyond low Earth orbit, and reduce the cost of achieving the
Nation's goals.

 The Secretary of State, in coordination with the heads of agencies, shall:

- Carry out diplomatic and public diplomacy efforts to strengthen the

understanding of, and support for, United States national space policies and
programs and to promote the international use of United States space
capabilities, systems, and services;

- Encourage international support for the recovery and use of outer space
resources;

- Lead the consideration of proposals and concepts for arms control measures if
they are equitable, effectively verifiable, and enhance the national security of the
United States and its allies;

- Pursue bilateral and multilateral transparency and confidence-building measures

to encourage responsible actions in, and the peaceful use of, outer space to

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strengthen the safety, stability, security, and long-term sustainability of space

activities, to increase predictability and reduce the risk of misunderstanding and
inadvertent conflict escalation; and

- Cooperate with likeminded international partners to establish standards of safe

and responsible behavior, including openness, transparency, and predictability,
to facilitate the detection, identification, and attribution of actions in space that
are inconsistent with the safety, stability, security, and long-term sustainability of
space activities.

 The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, in coordination with the
Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the
Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of other agencies as appropriate, shall lead the
development of national and international planetary protection guidelines, working
with scientific, commercial, and international partners, for the appropriate protection
of planetary bodies and Earth from harmful biological contamination.

Preserving the Space Environment to Enhance the Long-term Sustainability of Space

Activities
Preserve the Space Environment. To preserve the space environment for responsible,
peaceful, and safe use, and with a focus on minimizing space debris the United States shall:

 Continue leading the development and adoption of international and industry

standards and policies, such as the Guidelines for the Long-term Sustainability of Outer
Space Activities and the Space Debris Mitigation Guidelines of the United Nations
Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space;

 Continue to make available basic space situational awareness (SSA) data, and provide
for basic space traffic coordination (including conjunction and reentry notifications),
free of direct user fees while supporting new opportunities for United States
commercial and non-profit products and services;

 Develop, maintain, and use SSA information from commercial, civil, and national
security sources in an open architecture data repository to detect, identify, and
attribute actions in space that are inconsistent with the safety, stability, security, and
the long-term sustainability of space activities;

 Develop and maintain space flight safety standards and best practices to coordinate
space traffic;

 Ensure that, consistent with international obligations, timely and accurate information
concerning United States space objects launched into Earth orbit or beyond is entered

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into the United States domestic space object registry maintained by the Secretary of
State and internationally registered with the United Nations as soon as practicable;

 Limit the creation of new debris, consistent with mission requirements and cost
effectiveness, during the procurement and operation of spacecraft, launch services,
and conduct of tests and experiments in space by following and periodically updating
the United States Government Orbital Debris Mitigation Standard Practices;

 Regularly assess existing guidelines for non-government activities in or beyond Earth

orbit, and maintain a timely and responsive regulatory environment for licensing those
activities, consistent with United States law and international obligations;

 Pursue research and development of technologies and techniques to characterize and

to mitigate risks from orbital debris, reduce hazards, and increase understanding of the
current and future debris environment;

 Evaluate and pursue, in coordination with allies and partners, active debris removal as
a potential long-term approach to ensure the safety of flight in key orbital regimes;

 Require approval of exceptions to the United States Government Orbital Debris

Mitigation Standard Practices from the head of the sponsoring agency and notification
to the Secretary of State; and

 Continue to foster the development of best practices to prevent on-orbit collisions by

collaborating with the commercial space sector and likeminded nations to: maintain
and improve space object databases; pursue common international data standards and
integrity measures; provide services and disseminate orbital tracking information,
including predictions of space-object conjunctions, to commercial and international
entities; and expand SSA to deep space.

Effective Export Policies

The United States will work to stem the flow of advanced space technology to unauthorized
parties while ensuring the competitiveness of the United States space industrial base. The
heads of agencies are responsible for protecting against adverse technology transfer in the
conduct of their programs.

The United States Government shall:

 Consider letters of request and the issuance of licenses for space-related exports on a
case-by-case basis, pursuant to, and in accordance with, the International Traffic in
Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Conventional Arms Transfer Policy, the Export
Administration Regulations, and other applicable laws and commitments;

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 Encourage the export of space-related items when doing so would not threaten the
national interest;

 Make eligible for streamlined authorization the export of space-related items that are
generally available in the global marketplace, do not provide critical military functions,
and are destined for certain allied or partner countries.

Consistent with the foregoing, and consistent with existing law and regulation, license
applications for exports of space-related items will be subject to a presumption of denial when
destined for arms-embargoed destinations or other embargoed destinations.

Sensitive or advanced spacecraft-related exports may require government-to-government

transfers through the Foreign Military Sales process. The Secretary of State shall determine
whether current arms transfer and nonproliferation policy directives provide sufficient
guidance for the transfer of emerging technologies and space capabilities.

Space Nuclear Power and Propulsion

The United States will develop and use space nuclear power and propulsion (SNPP) systems
where such systems enable achievement of United States scientific, national security, and
commercial objectives. The United States will adhere to principles of safety, stability, security,
and long-term sustainability in its development and utilization of space nuclear systems. In
accordance with the National Security Policy Memorandum-20 Presidential Memorandum on
Launch of Spacecraft Containing Space Nuclear Systems (August 20, 2019), authorization for
launches of spacecraft containing space nuclear systems shall follow a tiered process based on
the characteristics of the system, level of potential hazard, and national security
considerations.

The Administrator of NASA and the Secretary of Defense shall conduct and support design,
development, and utilization of space nuclear systems, as appropriate, to enable and achieve
their respective mission objectives.

The Secretary of Energy shall support the design, development, and utilization of SNPP
systems to enable and achieve the scientific, exploration, and national security objectives
of the United States, in coordination with sponsoring agencies and other entities, as
appropriate. The Secretary of Energy shall maintain, on a full cost recovery basis, the capability
and infrastructure to develop, furnish, and conduct safety analyses for space nuclear systems
for use in United States Government space systems.

The Secretary of Energy, in cooperation with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the heads
of appropriate agencies, shall provide technical and operational support to the launch of SNPP

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systems to prepare for and respond to any potential radiological impacts of a launch to ensure
the protection of public health and safety.

The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with other appropriate agencies, shall promote
responsible United States commercial space nuclear system investment, innovation, and
operations.

The Secretary of Transportation shall, in consultation with other applicable agencies, serve as
the licensing authority for commercial launches of space nuclear systems.

Protection of Electromagnetic Spectrum

In matters pertaining to the electromagnetic spectrum the United States shall:

 Seek to protect access to, and operation in, the electromagnetic spectrum and related
orbital assignments required to support the use of space by the United States
Government, its allies, and partners, and United States commercial users;

 Preserve and protect the electromagnetic spectrum required to sustain existing and
emergent space-based capabilities, including communications, navigation, and Earth
observation;

 Explicitly address requirements for electromagnetic spectrum and orbital assignments

prior to approving acquisition of space capabilities;

 Coordinate stable and predictable national and international regulatory frameworks to

enable and support the competitiveness of space services and systems licensed by the
United States;

 Seek to remove or to streamline regulatory impediments that may discourage

commercial space communications providers from obtaining licenses from the United
States;

 Conduct and publish thorough operational, technical, and policy impact assessments,
in coordination with Government space system operators, prior to reallocating
spectrum for commercial, Government, or shared use;

 Enhance capabilities and techniques, in cooperation with commercial, civil, and

international partners, to detect, identify, locate, and attribute sources of radio
frequency interference, and to take necessary measures to sustain the electromagnetic
environment in which critical United States space systems operate;

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 Seek appropriate regulatory approval under United States domestic regulations for
United States Government Earth stations operating with commercially owned
satellites, consistent with the regulatory approvals granted to analogous commercial
Earth stations; and

 Prioritize research and development of advanced technologies, innovative spectrum-

utilization methods, and spectrum-sharing tools and techniques that increase
spectrum access, efficiency, and effectiveness.

Cybersecurity for United States Space Systems

In matters relating to cybersecurity for space systems the United States Government shall:

 Seek to ensure space systems and their supporting infrastructure, including software,
are designed, developed, and operated using risk-based, cybersecurity-informed
engineering;

 Collaborate with industry and encourage development and integration of cybersecurity

plans for space systems that mitigate unauthorized access to critical space system
functions, reduce vulnerabilities, protect ground systems, promote cybersecurity
hygiene practices, and manage supply chain risks;

 Collaborate with interagency, allied, partner, and commercial space system operators
to promote the development and adoption of best practices and mitigations;

 Leverage widely adopted best practices and standards in the creation of rules and
regulations, as appropriate; and

 Determine appropriate cybersecurity measures for Government space systems through

a mission risk assessment specific to a space system's design and operations.

Assurance of National Critical Functions

The United States Government, in cooperation with private and public sectors, shall:

 Assure space-enabled national critical functions by developing the techniques,

measures, relationships, and capabilities necessary to maintain continuity of services;

 Pursue efforts to enhance the protection, cybersecurity, and resilience of selected

spacecraft and supporting infrastructure;

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 Periodically conduct operationally-focused exercises to test the continuity of national

critical functions and Federal mission assurance in a degraded or denied space
environment due to natural or manmade disruptions;

 Incorporate the simulated disruption of space systems into interagency and national
exercises; and

 Address mission assurance and architectural resilience through the design, acquisition,
command and control, exercise, and operation of materiel and non-materiel space and
non-space capabilities.

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Sector Guidelines
The United States conducts space activities in three distinct but interdependent sectors:
commercial, civil, and national security. Consistent with all applicable legal obligations
agencies shall comply with the following guidance.

Commercial Space Guidelines

The term "commercial," for the purposes of this policy, refers to goods, services, or activities
provided by private sector enterprises that bear a reasonable portion of the investment risk
and responsibility for the activity, operate in accordance with typical market-based incentives
for controlling cost and optimizing return on investment, and have the legal capacity to offer
those goods or services to existing or potential non-governmental customers.

A United States commercial space sector that leads in the global space marketplace is
foundational to national strategic objectives that include increased and sustained prosperity,
free market principles, enhanced international partnerships and collaboration, technological
innovation, and scientific discovery, and is vital to United States and allied security.

Promoting a Robust Commercial Space Industry. To promote a robust domestic

commercial space industry and strengthen United States leadership as the country of choice
for conducting commercial space activities, the heads of agencies shall:

 Purchase and use United States commercial space capabilities and services, to the
maximum practical extent under existing law, when such capabilities and services meet
United States Government requirements;

 Prioritize partnerships with commercial industry to meet Government requirements

through the modification of existing commercial space capabilities and services when
potential system modifications represent a cost-effective and timely acquisition
approach for the Government and are consistent with system and mission-security
practices and principles;

 Consider inventive, nontraditional arrangements for acquiring commercial space

goods and services to meet United States Government requirements, including
measures such as hosting Government capabilities on commercial spacecraft,
purchasing scientific or operational data from commercial satellite operators in
support of Government missions, leveraging satellite servicing or on-orbit
manufacturing, and public-private partnerships;

 Develop Government space systems only when in the national interest and no suitable
or cost-effective United States commercial or, as appropriate, international
commercial capability or service is available or could be available in time to meet
Government requirements;

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 Refrain from conducting United States Government space activities that preclude,
discourage, or compete with United States commercial space activities, unless required
by national security or public safety;

 Pursue opportunities for transferring routine operational space functions to the

commercial space sector where beneficial and cost-effective and consistent with legal,
security, or safety needs;

 Cultivate increased technological innovation and entrepreneurship and provide

alternatives to predatory foreign investment in the commercial space sector through
the use of incentives such as prizes, competitions, and competitive grants;

 Ensure that United States Government space technology and infrastructure are made
available for commercial use on a reimbursable, non-interference and equitable basis
to the maximum practical extent, consistent with applicable laws and national security
interests;

 Promote continued commercial United States leadership in space by making available,

consistent with applicable laws and national security, commercially relevant
technologies developed by Federal research and development programs to United
States industry;

 Create transparent regulatory processes that minimize, consistent with national

security and public safety, the regulatory burden and uncertainty for commercial space
activities and that are flexible so as to accommodate and to adapt to technical
development, business innovation, and market demands;

 Encourage State and local governments to support the commercial space sector for the
purposes of cultivating a technically skilled work force, diversifying innovation
potential, and stimulating economic growth;

 Foster fair and open global trade and commerce through the promotion of standards
and regulations that have been developed with input from United States industry;

 Encourage the purchase and use of United States commercial space services and
capabilities in international cooperative arrangements;

 Encourage the growth of United States commercial human space exploration, including
logistical provisioning, delivery, and the continued commercialization of operations in
and beyond low Earth orbit, and the use of microgravity as a domain for research and
development; and

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 Promote the export of United States commercial space goods and services, including
those developed by small and medium-sized enterprises, for use in international
markets, consistent with United States export controls and national security objectives.

International Trade Agreements. The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has the
primary responsibility for international trade agreements to which the United States is a party.
USTR, in consultation with other relevant heads of agencies, will lead any effort relating to the
negotiation and implementation of trade disciplines governing trade in goods and services
related to space.

Mission Authorization of Novel Activities. The Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with

the National Space Council, shall:

 Identify whether any planned space activities fall beyond the scope of existing
authorization and supervision processes necessary to meet international obligations;
and

 Lead, if necessary, the development of minimally burdensome, responsive,

transparent, and adaptive review, authorization, and supervision processes for such
activities, consistent with national security and public safety interests, with a
presumption of approval and prompt appeals process.

Foster the Development of Space Collision Warning Measures. The Secretary of Commerce,
in consultation with the Secretaries of State, Defense, and Transportation, the Administrator
of NASA, and the heads of other agencies, shall collaborate, consistent with applicable law,
with industry and foreign nations to:

 Maintain and improve space object identification databases;

 Pursue common international data standards and data integrity measures;

 Disseminate orbital tracking information to commercial and international entities,

including predictions of space object conjunctions;

 Enhance the common understanding of resident space objects;

 Develop and implement standard practices for conjunction assessment operations to

ensure the safety of flight of all space operations, across all orbital regimes; and

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 Develop common commercial operating guidelines and propose licensing

requirements, consistent with respective agency mission and authorities, for large
constellations, rendezvous and proximity operations, satellite servicing, small
satellites, end-of-mission planning, and other classes of space operations.

Civil Space Guidelines

Space Science, Exploration, and Discovery. The United States shall lead an innovative and
sustainable program of scientific discovery, technology development, and space exploration
with commercial and international partners to enable human expansion across the solar
system and to bring back to Earth new knowledge and opportunities. Beginning with
missions beyond low Earth orbit, the United States will lead the return of humans to the
Moon for long-term exploration and utilization, followed by human missions to Mars and
other destinations.

The Administrator of NASA, in collaboration with other appropriate agencies, Federal

laboratories, and commercial partners, shall, consistent with applicable law:

 Lead a program to land the next American man and the first American woman on the
Moon by 2024, followed by a sustained presence on the Moon by 2028, and the
subsequent landing of the first human on Mars;

 Continue the operation of the International Space Station (ISS) in cooperation with
international partners for scientific, technological, commercial, diplomatic, and
educational purposes while developing separate commercial platforms to sustain
continuous United States presence in and utilization of low Earth orbit and to transition
beyond ISS operations;

 Develop partnerships to foster new economic activities in and beyond low Earth orbit
that enable NASA and other customers to purchase services and capabilities at lower
cost;

 In consultation with international and commercial partners as appropriate, support

activities that include the presence of humans in space; maintain continuous human
presence in Earth orbit by transitioning from ISS to commercial platforms and services;
and continue to support future objectives in human space exploration;

 Continue as the launch agent for the civil space sector while utilizing commercial space
capabilities and services to the maximum practical extent;

 Continue to grow partnerships with the commercial space sector to enable safe,
reliable, and cost-effective transport of crew and cargo to destinations in low Earth and
cislunar orbits, and to the lunar surface;

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 Lead space exploration technology development efforts in collaboration with industry,

academia, and international partners to increase capabilities for future human and
robotic space exploration missions while decreasing mission costs;

 Maintain a sustained robotic presence in the solar system with international and
commercial partners to: prepare for future human missions; conduct scientific
investigations; map and characterize water, mineral, and elemental resources; and
demonstrate new technologies;

 Conduct space science for observations, research, and analysis of the Sun, space
weather, the solar system, and the universe to enhance knowledge of the cosmos,
advance scientific understanding, understand the conditions that may support the
development of life, and search for planetary bodies and Earth-like planets in orbit
around other stars;

 Pursue capabilities, in cooperation with other agencies, commercial, and international

partners, to detect, track, catalog, and characterize near Earth objects to warn of
any predicted Earth impact and to identify potentially resource-rich planetary objects;
and

 Develop options, in collaboration with other agencies, and international partners, for
planetary defense actions both on Earth and in space to mitigate the potential effects
of a predicted near Earth object impact or trajectory.

Observation of the Earth's Surface, Environment, and Weather. To continue and to

enhance a broad array of programs of space-based observation, research, and analysis of the
Earth's surface, oceans, and atmosphere and their interactions, and to improve life on Earth:

 The Administrator of NASA, in coordination with the heads of other appropriate

agencies, shall conduct a program of research to understand Earth's interconnected
systems, including the development of new Earth observing satellites for other agencies
to use for operational purposes.

 The Secretary of Commerce, through the Administrator of the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), shall be responsible for the requirements,
funding, and operation of civil environmental satellites and data-gathering in support
of atmospheric and space weather forecasting. NOAA may utilize NASA as the
acquisition agent for operational environmental satellites for those activities and
programs.

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 The Secretary of Commerce, through the Administrator of NOAA, and the Secretary of
Defense, through the Secretary of the Air Force, in coordination with the Administrator
of NASA and the heads of other appropriate agencies, shall:

- Continue existing coverage responsibilities;

- Develop a plan to provide Earth environmental satellite observation

capabilities, including ground systems for operations, that meet current and
future civil and national security requirements; and

- Ensure the continued sharing of data from all systems.

 In support of operational requirements the Secretary of Commerce, in coordination

with the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of NASA, and the heads of other
appropriate agencies, shall:

- Collaborate with academia, the commercial sector, and international partners to

ensure uninterrupted operational environmental satellite observations using
cost-effective, resilient methods to acquire global meteorological satellite data;

- Coordinate, as practicable, on future satellite and ground system architectures

to reduce duplication of space acquisition processes and capabilities;

- Utilize international partnerships to sustain and enhance a robust Earth

observations program that meets civil and national security requirements,
including weather, climate, ocean, and coastal observations; and

- Purchase commercial environmental data for use in meteorological and space

weather models when appropriate.

 The Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, in consultation with the
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, shall coordinate the
implementation of the National Space Weather Strategy and Action Plan. The goals of
this strategy are to: enhance the protection of Government and commercial systems
against the effects of space weather; disseminate accurate and timely space weather
characterization and forecasts; and establish plans and procedures for responding
to and recovering from space weather events. Agencies contributing to the United
States Government Earth science enterprise shall pursue innovative partnerships with
the commercial sector to make their agency's Earth observation data more easily
discoverable, accessible, and usable to the public.

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Land Remote Sensing

The Secretary of the Interior, through the Director of the United States Geological Survey
(USGS), shall:

 Conduct integrated predictive science, which includes research, monitoring,

assessments, and modeling, on natural and human-induced changes to Earth's land,
land cover, and inland surface waters, and manage a national global land surface data
archive and its distribution;

 Determine the operational requirements for collecting, processing, archiving, and

distributing land surface data to the United States Government and other users;

 Use international and commercial partnerships to help sustain and enhance land
surface observations from space; and

 Utilize, consistent with national security classification guidelines and sharing

agreements and in coordination with the Secretary of Defense and the Director
of National Intelligence, remote sensing information related to the environment and to
disasters that is acquired from national security space systems.

The Secretary of the Interior, through the Director of the USGS, and the Administrator of NASA
shall work together to maintain a sustainable land-imaging program for operational land
remote sensing observations that meets the needs of core United States users and leverages
government, commercial, and international capabilities.

The Administrators of NASA and NOAA, and the Director of the USGS shall:

 Collaborate, as practicable, on future satellite and ground system architectures

to ensure that civil space acquisition processes and capabilities are not unnecessarily
duplicated; and

 Continue to develop civil applications and information tools based on data collected by
Earth observation satellites. They shall, to the maximum extent practicable, develop
those applications and tools using known standards and open protocols and make data
and applications from United States Government satellites openly available to the
public.

The Secretary of Commerce shall license and regulate private remote sensing systems
consistent with the recognition that long-term United States national security and foreign
policy interests are best served by ensuring that United States industry continues to lead the
rapidly maturing and highly competitive commercial space-based remote sensing market. The

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Secretary of Commerce shall consult with the Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense in
these matters in accordance with applicable law.

National Security Space Guidelines

The United States seeks a secure, stable, and accessible space domain, which has become a
warfighting domain as a result of competitors seeking to challenge United States and allied
interests in space.

Strength and security in space contribute to United States and international security and
stability. It is imperative that the United States adapt its national security organizations,
policies, strategies, doctrine, security classification frameworks, and capabilities to deter
hostilities, demonstrate responsible behaviors, and, if necessary, defeat aggression and
protect United States interests in space through:

 Robust space domain awareness of all activities in space with the ability to characterize
and attribute potentially threatening behavior;

 Communicating to competitors which space activities the United States considers

undesirable or irresponsible, while promoting, demonstrating, and communicating
responsible norms of behavior;

 Assured, credible, and demonstrable responses to defend vital national interests in

space;

 Resilient space-enabled missions that reduce the impact or deny the effectiveness of
adversaries' actions; and

 Synchronized diplomatic, information, military, and economic strategies that:

- Deter adversaries and other actors from conducting activities that may threaten
the peaceful use of space by the United States, its allies, and partners; and

- Compel and impose costs on adversaries to cease behaviors that threaten the
peaceful use of space by the United States, its allies, and partners.

The United States Space Force will pursue these objectives as the primary branch of the United
States Armed Forces responsible for organizing, training, and equipping forces capable of
projecting power in, from, and to space to defend United States national interests; protecting
the freedom of operation in, from, and to the space domain; and enhancing the lethality and
effectiveness of the Joint Force. The United States Space Force, and other branches of the
Armed Forces as appropriate, will also present forces to the United States Space Command,
and to the other Combatant Commands as appropriate, to deliver combat and combat support

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capabilities necessary to enable prompt and sustained offensive and defensive space
operations, and to provide space support to joint operations in all domains.

Synchronized National Security Space

The space domain is a priority intelligence and military operational domain for the
United States. The United States Intelligence Community and Department of Defense use
space capabilities to provide strategic, operational, and tactical intelligence and decisive
military advantages to the Nation.

The Secretary of Defense and the Director of National Intelligence, in consultation with the
heads of other appropriate agencies, Federal laboratories, and, as appropriate, in partnership
with United States industry, shall:

 Develop, acquire, and operate space systems and supporting information systems and
networks to aid United States national security interests and to enable defense and
intelligence operations;

 Procure resilient space capabilities and services to provide defense and intelligence
operations during times of competition and armed conflict;

 Develop and apply advanced technologies, capabilities, and concepts that anticipate
and rapidly respond to changes in the threat environment and improve the timeliness
and quality of intelligence and data to support operations;

 Identify and characterize current and future threats to United States space missions for
the purposes of enabling effective deterrence and defense;

 Develop resilient, cost-effective architectures and accelerate acquisition and fielding of

space capabilities with sufficient capacity to increase the resilience of space-enabled
missions and to expand the ability to field or to rapidly reconstitute space capabilities
based on the strategic environment;

 Develop, implement, and exercise plans, procedures, techniques, and capabilities

necessary to assure critical national security space-enabled missions;

 Protect and defend United States national security space assets through integration
and synchronization of operational command and control capabilities and activities
that foster seamless execution between the Intelligence Community and Department
of Defense;

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 Promote, in collaboration with the Secretary of State, norms of behavior for responsible
national security space activities that protect United States, allied, and partner
interests in space;

 Ensure cost-effective resilience of space capabilities and assurance of space-enabled

missions, including supporting information systems and networks, commensurate with
their planned use and taking into account the value these systems provide in
countering or mitigating threats, the consequences of their loss or degradation, and the
availability of other means to perform the mission;

 Expand and increase emphasis on disruptive and emerging commercial space

capabilities and provide assessments to United States and allied leadership on the
effects of these capabilities on national security;

 Integrate cybersecurity into space operations and capabilities to retain positive control
of space systems and verify the integrity of critical functions, missions, and services
they provide;

 Improve, develop, integrate, demonstrate, and proliferate in cooperation with relevant

interagency, international, intergovernmental, and commercial entities, space domain
awareness capabilities to predict, detect, warn, characterize, and attribute human-
caused and naturally occurring activities that pose threats to space systems of United
States interest;

 Provide to the Department of Commerce and other agencies, as necessary, SSA

information that supports national security, civil, and human space flight activities,
planetary defense from hazardous near-Earth objects, and commercial and allied space
operations;

 Collaborate with allies and partners actively engaging in space security and intelligence
operations to incentivize and institute mechanisms for the exchange of relevant space,
and space-related information; and

 Collaborate with the Secretaries of Commerce and Energy, the Administrator of NASA,
and the heads of other relevant agencies to periodically review the health and
competitiveness of the United States space industrial base to determine whether the
domestic space industry can meet the technical requirements, production, and service
of national security space programs.

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Department of Defense
The Secretary of Defense shall:

 Defend the use of space for United States national security purposes, the United States
economy, allies, and partners;

 Protect freedom of navigation and preserve lines of communication that are open, safe,
and secure in the space domain;

 Ensure that space capabilities are of sufficient capability and capacity to enable
decisive offensive and defensive space operations vital to defending United States,
allied, and partner interests in space while continuing to sustain support to joint
operations;

 Conduct operations in, from, and through space to deter conflict, and if deterrence fails,
to defeat aggression while protecting and defending United States vital interests with
allies and partners;

 Provide, as launch agent for the Department of Defense and the Intelligence
Community, affordable and timely space access for national security purposes while
using commercial space capabilities and services to the maximum practical extent;

 Develop, as launch agent for the Department of Defense and the Intelligence
Community, rapid launch options to reinforce or to reconstitute priority national
security space capabilities in times of crisis and conflict and that, when practicable and
appropriate, leverage commercial capabilities;

 Detect, characterize, warn, attribute, and respond to, in coordination with the Secretary
of State and other relevant agencies, space-related behaviors and activities that
threaten the space interests of the United States, its allies, or partners, international
peace and security, or the long-term sustainability of the space environment;

 Periodically conduct policy-driven, threat-informed, strategically-focused

space posture reviews and assessments that encompass military, diplomatic,
informational, and economic aspects of posture, including evaluation of the suitability
of U.S. Government, commercial industry, and international space architectures to
deliver effective and integrated deterrence and compellence solutions; and

 Develop, acquire, and operate space intelligence capabilities to support joint

operations.

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Intelligence Community
The Director of National Intelligence shall:

 Enhance foundational scientific and technical intelligence collection and single and all-
source intelligence analysis;

 Coordinate with the Secretary of Defense to ensure necessary and sufficient intelligence
support for acquisition, operations, and defense of space capabilities;

 Develop, obtain, and operate space intelligence capabilities to support strategic goals,
intelligence priorities, and assigned tasks;

 Provide robust, timely, and effective collection, processing, analysis, and dissemination
of information on foreign space capabilities and threats and supporting information
system activities;

 Integrate all-source intelligence of foreign space capabilities and intentions to produce

enhanced intelligence products that support space domain awareness;

 Support monitoring, compliance, and verification for transparency and confidence-

building measures and, if applicable, arms control agreements;

 Ensure Intelligence Community equities are represented and reviewed in United States
Government radio frequency deliberations; and

 Promote counterintelligence and security partnerships and practices within the

commercial, civil, and national security space communities.

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